Parsnip and pancetta fettuccine with parmesan and butter

So what better way to reward myself from the agonies of studying than to cook! Today, I decided on this dish from Jamie Oliver's website, Parsnip and pancetta tagliatelle with parmesan and butter. The name is so long it could almost be a tongue twister. In any case, I revised the dish by using fettuccine because I couldn't find tagliatte in Cold storage.


Ingredients (Notice anything weird?)

(Can anyone tell the difference?!)

HAHA. One's for Rusky the dog and one's for human consumption!

Now, this is the correct set of ingredients.

First, i chopped the bacon into small pieces.

I also added in cheese sausage

Cook the pasta according to the instructions and drain in a colander, reserving a little of the water.

Next, fry the bacon and the herb(rosemary) in half of the butter stipulated for 2 minutes.

Next, add the garlic and parsnips (and sausage in my case) in. Cook under medium heat for another 3 minutes till the parsnips softened reasonably. Make sure the bacon looks golden brown! (I didn't fry mine enough so it didnt look as colourful in the end)

Mix the pasta with the parsnips and pancetta and stir in the rest of your butter and the Parmesan, adding a little of the cooking water to loosen the mixture and make it creamy and shiny. (I kind of mixed the pasta and parsnips mixture only after turning off the fire so i think they cogulated together)

That's the end product. (Maybe not too appetizing looking haha.)

This is the supposed end product, from jamie oliver.

Parsnip and pancetta fettuccine with parmesan and butter Serves 4

Ingredients:

12 slices of streaky bacon

1 handful of fresh rosemary

4 good knobs of butter

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

2 australian parsnips, peeled, halved and finely sliced lengthways

455g dried fettuccine (or any kinds of pasta)

3 handfuls of grated Parmesan cheese

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

Steps:

1) In a large, non-stick frying pan, fry your pancetta and herbs in half the butter for 2 minutes, then add the garlic and parsnips. Cook for a further 3 minutes on a medium heat, until the pancetta is slightly golden and the parsnips have softened nicely.

2) Cook your tagliatelle in salted boiling water according to packet instructions, then drain, reserving a little of the cooking water.

3) Mix the pasta with the parsnips and pancetta and stir in the rest of your butter and the Parmesan, adding a little of the cooking water to loosen the mixture and make it creamy and shiny.

4) Season to taste.

Lemon Roasted Chicken

Lemon Roasted Chicken (Serves 4)

1 whole 3-5 pound chicken, cleaned
3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons pepper
1 lemon, zested and juiced (keep your lemon halves!)
8(ish) sprigs of Rosemary (you can certainly use more if you like)
4 cloves of garlic

1. Clean your chicken very well. Preheat your oven to 190 deg c.

2. Rub your olive oil onto the chicken skin


3. Get the zest of the lemon, then equal amounts of salt and pepper and apply onto the chicken.

4. Extract the juice of the lemon, coat some onto the skin and the cavity of the chicken.

5. Stuff your lemon halves, garlic cloves and some rosemary into the cavity of the chicken.

6. Rub some rosemary onto the skin as well. (You may also apply an additional honey coat to the chicken skin)

7. Allow the chicken to sit for about 30 minutes for marination to sink in.

7. Cook your chicken for about 90 minutes or till it looks cooked enough. Take the chicken out every 30 minutes or so to baste it with lemon juice.

8. Allow to sit for a few minutes before cutting/serving. Serves 4.courtesy of crepes of wrath

Raisin & Potato Chicken Macaroni Salad

Recently, I got to taste chef alwin from garden asia's pasta and egg salad and man, it was awesome! I know him on a more personal level and I must say, he is really one of the few persons I know around with such high standards for the quality of his food. Anyhow, I tried his organic fusilli pasta and it really inspired me to adapt from his pasta. What I like about pasta salads is that they are really flexible; you can add any kinds of fruits/ vegetables you like to your pasta.


tiny resemblance to his pasta

Ingredients required:


1 packet of macaroni (I think I would personally prefer using fusilli)
4 potatoes
2-3 eggs
2 apples, diced (of course, you can add other fruits or vegetables you like)
4 slices of chicken breast, skinless and shredded
4-5 cloves of fresh onion, finely chopped
100g raisins
fresh lettuce
500g salad dressing
optional: prawns
optional: lemon

1) Boil the macaroni according to the instructions on the packaging. Drain pasta with a colander, leaving some of the water to prevent pasta from drying up.


2) Meanwhile, peel the skin of the potatoes (you can leave it on if you want) and boil them. Boil the eggs in a separate pot.

3) Diced the apple and put it in salt to prevent oxidization. Simmer the chicken in hot water for about 3 minutes.


4) Chop the onions finely and add it into the pasta mixture. (Do not saute the onions so the freshness of its taste can be kept.) (Of course, the onions can be omitted if you are not a huge fan of theirs.) Add the raisins and diced apple in. Shred the chicken breast and add into the mixture.





5) Cut the boiled eggs into cubes and add into pasta mixture.

6) Finally, add the salad dressing and stir well together.


7) Refrigerate the pasta and serve cold. Alternatively, it could be served hot as well :)








And so, I came up with my own Macaroni salad :)